Nursery Manager: Lucy Differ

If, as a partnership (parents/key person/SENCO) we agree that your child needs some extra support, we will plan a Setting Based Support Plan (SBSP), setting achievable targets to help your child to develop. The targets will firstly be set out by our SENCO alongside your child’s key person, and shared with you. These targets will involve activities that cater to your child’s individual likes, interests and needs, and will be supported by your child’s key person. The targets will be regularly reviewed to ensure that your child is making progress. You will have frequent opportunities to meet with our SENCO and your child’s key person, both of whom will explain how our setting is supporting your child. We may need to seek expert advice/support from outside services such as speech and language therapists or early years advisors. Again, we will involve you at all times. As a nursery, we review how effective our provision is for children with SEND(are the children making progress?) through continuous evaluation. Evaluation consists of multi-agency meetings (which involve parents/carers, SENCO, key person and other professionals), and/or through monitoring your child’s SBSP and development.

Jigsaw Day Nursery acknowledges that every child is unique and develops at a different rate. We work alongside the ‘Early Years Foundation Stage’ curriculum (EYFS) and we plan for each individual child regardless of whether or not they have a SEND.Through continuous assessment we will identify the age and stage of development that your child is working towards and plan learning experiences to help them progress.

In addition to our ‘Parent Consultation Evenings’, where we discuss your child’s summative assessment, 27 month Integrated Progress Check and learning journey, and daily communication/sharing of information, you will also have the opportunity to discuss your child’s progress through 6-8 weekly meetings with your child’s key person and/or our SENCO, in which we will review your child’s SBSP together.

We have several policies and procedures in place to ensure that our staff are supporting your child’s overall wellbeing. These include:

Jigsaw Day Nursery has built strong working relationships with a wide range of professionals/services such as speech and language therapists, the Heath Visiting team, educational psychologists, Early Years Emotional and Behavioural Intervention team (EBIS), specialist early years advisors and occupational therapists. We know how to contact the appropriate service, and can obtain advice when we need to. These professionals also visit our setting to advise our staff and share their specialist knowledge and experiences. They will also work directly with you and your child, both at home and whilst they are with us. We are able to contact our local children’s centre which is situated in Clyde Road, St Leonard's on Sea (01424 200604 – Karen Croucher) for advice.

We currently have two qualified SENCOs in our nursery, Sharon Andersen and Sharrene Ferguson The SENCOs attend refresher trainingevery 3 years to enable them to keep updated in any changes in legislation. These staff are able to write and implement IEPs and work alongside the other staff to help and advise them. SENCOs attend inclusion support groups once per year, although if we felt we needed any extra support we have the opportunity to attend once per term. 

On registration you are given the option to sign a consent form to allow us to take your child on local outings. You will also receive a copy of our Supervision on Outings and Visits Policy. We occasionally plan local outings that are appropriate for all of the children in our setting for example trips to the park. We also have visitors to the nursery, e.g. firefighters, police force, visits from animal handlers. We always make sure that children have equal access to learning opportunities, including visits and trips and any adjustments that we can reasonably make for you or your child will always be considered. 

Our nursery is situated on the ground floor of a Victorian house on a quiet residential road with on street parking outside. There are two small sets of steps leading up to the building and a step outside to access the garden. We have spacious rooms for the children to play in and a large enclosed garden with both a grassed and paved area, separated by a set of steps. We currently do not have

Prior to registration, we encourage you to visit our nursery with your child to assess our facilities and suitability of provision for your child’s individual needs. After registering you will be offered a series of settling in sessions where you will spend time in our nursery with your child to help prepare them for their transition from home to nursery. The settling in period is individual for each child depending on their needs and how quickly they settle. Your child will not be left without you until both you and your key person feels they are ready (little steps).

By the time the child starts attending our nursery we will have built up a picture of what your child likes to do, and if they have any specific interests. We will have begun to get to know you as your child’s parent, and will have spoken at length with you regarding their current likes and dislikes and what you are currently encouraging your child to do at home. We would also be aware of any difficulties your child experiences as a result of his/her additional needs and together decided on a plan of action to both settle your child in successfully and assist with the next steps in their learning.

The decision about what type and how much support your child will receive will be made in partnership with yourself, the nursery and any other services that you are currently engaging with. It will take into consideration the child’s needs and wishes as far as possible, and also will depend on whether your child will need support from an additional adult in the setting to promote his/her safety, wellbeing and education. Because individual educational plans will regularly be set in partnership with you we will be able to monitor their success. We will regularly meet with you and also complete monitoring forms for ESCC to show how your child has benefited from attending the nursery.

Our aim is to support you as your child’s first and most important educator by involving you in your child’s education and in the full life of Jigsaw Day Nursery. 

If you would like to discuss something about your child, their care and education, or if you have a concern, you should contact your child’s key person or our Nursery Manager – Lucy Differ, who is also our lead SENCO. Our deputy SENCO is Sarah Tarling. In the event of your child’s key person being absent you can also discuss day to day information with your co-key person.